Hellfire Club – Jay & Miles X-Plain the X-Men

As Mentioned in Episode 528 – Welcome to the Slippery Slope

June 21, 2026 Jay One comment

Listen to the podcast here.

Me, too, Scott. Me, too. (New X-Men #142)

I’m not sure Sabretooth has ever looked cooler than this. (New X-Men #142)

Jake Danial’s. (New X-Men #142)

There are better places to drink than a nine-panel grid, but not many. (New X-Men #142)

Aw, these guys. (New X-Men #142)

Welcome to the World. (New X-Men #143)

I like these weird li’l dudes. Too bad they are extremely doomed. (New X-Men #143)

This looks cool and all, but what I really want to know is why SONY was allowed, but Jack Daniel’s wasn’t. (New X-Men #143)

Cool dudes lookin’ cool. (New X-Men #143)

Wolverine vs. a rail gun. (New X-Men #143)

All car cops are bastards. (New X-Men #144)

Walking all over a time-frozen splash page, as one does. (New X-Men #144)

Meet Weapon XV. (New X-Men #144)

While Wolverine and Fantomex declare war on Weapon Plus, this man is living his own private Silent Hill game. (New X-Men #144)

And there goes Weapon XV. (New X-Men #144)

Weapon Plus HQ is, in its own way, every bit as surreal as the World. (New X-Men #145)

Ugh, Fantomex is so cool. (New X-Men #145)

The plus logo is a really interesting detail. (New X-Men #145)

NEXT EPISODE: Magneto, unmasked!

528 – Welcome to the Slippery Slope

June 21, 2026 Jay 3 comments

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | RSS

In which friends don’t let friends drink sparkling wine at the Hellfire Club; Cyclops is a Silent Hill protagonist; Fantomex is a cool dude; John Sublime has his grubby little fingers in everything; and three men do a lot of things to avoid going to therapy.

X-PLAINED:

What happened to the World
Weapon XVI
New X-Men #142-145
Fantomex (more) (again)
The Weapon Plus program
A large number of things men will do instead of going to therapy
How to murder a nice, romantic mood
The Hellfire Club, the rest of the time
Jake Danials Whisky
A drinking contest
The Mysteries of Harris Burdick
The World
Weapon XV
A series of B&Es
Advanced Idea Mechanics (A.I.M.)
Car cops
Weapon XV’s feelings
Weapon Plus’s secret space headquarters
Education at the Xavier School
Gender-swapped superheroes and heirs to superheroes

NEXT EPISODE: Magneto, unmasked!

Check out the visual companion to this episode on our blog.

Find us on Apple Podcasts or Spotify!

Jay and Miles X-Plain the X-Men is 100% ad-free and listener supported. If you want to help support the podcast–and unlock more cool stuff–you can do that right here!

Buy rad swag at our Dashery shop!

As Mentioned in Episode 503 – Dream’s Anticlimax

October 19, 2025 Jay 3 comments

Listen to the episode here.

No, seriously. (Uncanny X-Men #388)

Ouch. (Uncanny X-Men #388)

A nonspecific explosion. (Uncanny X-Men #388)

So large. (Cable #87)

no but seriously how (Cable #87)

Bye, Post. (Cable #87)

One of his teammates has to draw the tattoo on every morning with a sharpie. (Bishop: The Last X-Man #16)

Every time they watch a movie, Wolverine carefully explains to his teammates that it’s not real. (Bishop: The Last X-Man #16)

Mother of the year. (Bishop: The Last X-Man #16)

Now kiss! (X-Men #108)

This is not subtext, although it may be an anagram of subtext. (X-Men #108)

NEXT EPISODE: SKA!

503 – Dream’s Anticlimax

October 19, 2025 Jay 5 comments

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | RSS

In which history repeats itself; Senator Kelly prevaricates (and then dies); Magneto keeps the cape on; Mystique does evil science; Post remains irrelevant (and then dies); Pyro saves the day (and then dies); Cable is a large man; Moira MacTaggert does the astral nasty (and then dies); and we really, really, really want to go to Froggy World.

X-PLAINED:

Moira MacTaggert’s mutation
A dubious plan
Evidence that we are in the wrong universe
Other crossovers named “Dream’s End”
A significant disclaimer
Uncanny X-Men #388
Cable #87
Bishop: The Last X-Men #16
X-Men #108
A surprise presidential platform
Sir Gordon Phillips and his guests
The new Brotherhood of Mutants
Cable’s hair
A lot of movie allusions
An ambiguous explosion
A deeply pointless retcon
An illusion
Cable’s psimitar
Pyro’s last stand
Dickalogue
Astral sex
The (apparent) death of Moira MacTaggert
A weird bonding moment in a cemetery
How to identify a time traveler
The (actual) death of Senator Robert Kelly
Mutant-free parts of the Marvel Universe
Froggy World

NEXT EPISODE: Generation X!

Check out the visual companion to this episode on our blog!

Find us on Apple Podcasts or Spotify!

Jay and Miles X-Plain the X-Men is 100% ad-free and listener supported. If you want to help support the podcast–and unlock more cool stuff–you can do that right here!

Buy rad swag at our Dashery shop!

As Mentioned in Episode 481 – Chekhov’s Butt-Gun

March 23, 2025 Miles 4 comments

Listen to the episode here.

In which Adrienne Frost flirts with a corpse. (Generation X #67)

Oh man, Monet’s left sock is going to be all wet and gross for the rest of the morning… (Generation X #67)

I used to love it when the cafeteria served GReeBo C back in high school. (Generation X #67)

I think those bullies were held back a few years… like maybe 30 or so. (Generation X #67)

Just some really fun faces on this page. (Generation X #67)

NO PRETTY BOYS. (Generation X #67)

It’s like a romance comic cover exploded! (Generation X #68)

Hey, that shirt’s just painted on! (Generation X #68)

Teens are the worst, Jubilee. (Generation X #68)

“And I assure you, that’s far from the most dangerous thing in this skirt.” (Generation X #68)

Everyone reacts to bad news in their own way. Penance’s way is to stick a Mjolnir sticker to her face. (Generation X #68)

Well shit. (Generation X #68)

The snowy calm before the fiery storm. (Generation X #69)

“The Leprechauns of Cassidy Keep never gave me this much grief.” (Generation X #69)

What fighting game is this supposed to be?! And don’t say Ninja Boogie! (Generation X #69)

Effortless. (Generation X #69)

What is this, Black Friday? (Generation X #70)

Kid’s got a point, Sean. (Generation X #70)

You really feel the crush of humanity in this issue. (Generation X #70)

Everett Thomas: hero ’til the end. (Generation X #70)

Bye, Adrienne. See ya never. (Generation X #70)

Left-to-right, the answers will be: make bad decisions as part of X-Factor, become a vampire mom, have sex with Angel in the sky above Ma Guthrie, get crucified on the X-Mansion’s lawn, and find out you’re a descendent of Apocalypse. (Generation X #70)

NEXT TIME: X-Force goes Counter-X!

LINKS AND FURTHER READING:

Episode 303 – No Simple Answers, feat. Laura Hudson

481 – Chekhov’s Butt-Gun

March 23, 2025 Miles 9 comments

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | RSS

In which Adrienne Frost is absolutely terrible (and so was Ronald Reagan); you should not put guns in your butt; Synch deserved better; and Jay and Miles inventory their favorite dangling plot threads of the ‘90s.

X-PLAINED:

Several potential origins of Havok’s stupid hat
Generation X #67-70
Revolution (more) (again)
Shockwave (more) (again)
Adrienne Frost (more) (again)
The New Xavier School and/or Massachusetts Academy (more) (again)
Possible necrophilia
Dorm life
How not to draw clothing
Rules of entry to Jubilee’s dorm room
The Rich Person Store
How to say the word “consigliere”
The ‘90s
Blackmail
Limits of telepathy
Arson
Ninja Boogie
Panic
How to keep Synch safe
Adultification
Failure to keep Synch safe
Where to pick up to follow along with us
Plot threads we’d like to see picked back up

NEXT EPISODE: X-Force goes Counter-X!

Check out the visual companion to this episode on our blog.

Find us on Apple Podcasts or Spotify!

Jay and Miles X-Plain the X-Men is 100% ad-free and listener supported. If you want to help support the podcast–and unlock more cool stuff–you can do that right here!

Buy rad swag at our Dashery shop!

408 – Yabba Yabba Yabba

April 23, 2023 Jay 7 comments

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | RSS

In which Bishop gets another miniseries; splinter timelines make fun narrative sandboxes; the X.S.E. goes detecting; the Statue of Liberty never fares well in dystopian futures; “Booger” is not a name you give yourself; and we can’t believe it’s taken us this long to make a hanky code joke about Bishop.

X-PLAINED:

Graymalkin
Bishop: X.S.E. #1-3
Bishop (more) (again)
Earth-1191
The X.S.E.
Hecate
Malcolm
Randall
The popularity of Earth-1191 miniseries
The solid-light hologram of Theseus
The Fanatix
Pulsar
Dogface
Hardball
Razorback
Kali (but not that one)
Shadowbox
“Quotations”
Seldon Trask
A mystery
The Rook
Annabella Knox
Anthony Shaw
The Bay Borough
The best episode of Justice League Unlimited
Organic LMDs
A disguise
An uncanny child
Dazzler’s career
X-Adjectives

NEXT EPISODE: The M-Plate Saga!

Check out the visual companion to this episode on our blog!

Find us on iTunes or Stitcher!

Jay and Miles X-Plain the X-Men is 100% ad-free and listener supported. If you want to help support the podcast–and unlock more cool stuff–you can do that right here!

Buy rad swag at our TeePublic shop!

As Mentioned in Episode 405 – Morally Purple

April 2, 2023 Jay Leave a comment

Listen to the episode here.

So, that’s a thing. (Cable #-1)

Honestly, I kinda wish Cable had sported this look for longer. (Cable #-1)

THE BOW TIE (Cable #-1)

Cable’s future may be kind of dystopian, but it’s also rad as hell. (Cable #-1)

Damn, bro. (Cable #-1)

On one hand, yes, he’s very dashing. On the other hand, they are definitely foster siblings. (Excalibur #-1)

Hey, we know that guy! (Excalibur #-1)

This is Sabu. Don’t get attached. (Excalibur #-1)

Harry Leland knows how to dress to impress. (Generation X #-1)

I know it’s a byproduct of the foreshortening plus slightly murky colors, but from at least one angle, it looks like Hank has a human-skin rug. (Generation X #-1)

And then they never talked to or mentioned each other again. (Generation X #-1)

Rachel’s cloak is SO GOOD. (Uncanny X-Men #-1)

this genocidal disco motherfucker (Uncanny X-Men #-1)

Tanya, NO. (Uncanny X-Men #-1)

NEXT EPISODE: More flashbacks!

LINKS & FURTHER BACKSTORY

Go check out Al’s podcast, House to Astonish!

405 – Morally Purple

March 27, 2023 Jay 9 comments

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | RSS

In which Jay returns; babies are bad at pretty much everything; continuity flies straight out the window; Cable should speak English with a Scottish accent; Harry Leland knows how to dress; Tanya Trask makes the same time travel mistake everyone makes; and we love Al Kennedy forever.

X-PLAINED:

Sentry (but not that one)
Babies
Flashback
Cable #-1
Excalibur #-1
Generation X #-1
Uncanny X-Men #-1
The preturn of Angus McWhirter, angry hovercraft-rental guy
Hippie Cable
Veins of science
Yet another time travel loop
What may or may not be how Nightcrawler quit the circus
Sabu
“Science”
A large volume of dubious continuity
Larry Trask (more) (again)
Jay’s cosplay aspirations
Sanctity (Tanya Trask)
The Twelve (somewhat)
A possible splinter timeline
The X-Men of 1602
Rube Goldberg

NEXT EPISODE: Flashback continues!

Check out the visual companion to this episode on our blog!

Find us on iTunes or Stitcher!

Jay and Miles X-Plain the X-Men is 100% ad-free and listener supported. If you want to help support the podcast–and unlock more cool stuff–you can do that right here!

Buy rad swag at our TeePublic shop!